Five years after the inaugural World Seabird Conference launched the World Seabird Union (WSU), Capetown will host the WSU’s second conference. From 26-30 October 2015, experts from around the world will gather to share information on seabird research and conservation.
The World Seabird Union is a global network for organisations to enhance seabird conservation and research. WSU is very much a collaborative effort, designed to provide a forum for researchers everywhere. Their Seabirds.net website serves as a portal for communication and information sharing among seabird scientists around the world.
The 2015 conference will be co-hosted by WSU and the African Seabird Group. The theme is Seabirds: Global Ocean Sentinels, highlighting the importance of seabirds as indicators of ocean health and climate change impacts. Sessions on Marine Protected Areas, breeding sites, the relationship between seabirds and forage fish, and African and polar seabirds are planned.
Legacy initiatives, intended to promote collaboration and provide long-term outputs, will focus on support of early career scientists, interregional collaborations, regional research and conservation priorities, and increasing the global network of seabird colony and performance databases.
The previous conference featured more than 700 presentations informing on the work of more than 1300 individual authors, presenters and convenors. The 2015 session is likely to exceed that. And for those who won’t be able to attend in person, there are plans for interactive access through Facebook and Twitter.
Although the deadline for submitting proposals for symposia and workshops has passed, abstracts and posters will be accepted until 30 January 2015 and registration will open 1 January.
For more details please visit the World Seabird Conference website.